United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the charitable tax deduction for contributions of qualified vehicles (i.e., highway motor vehicles, boats, or airplanes) to: (1) set forth revised acknowledgment requirements for vehicles valued at $2,500 or less and vehicles valued at more than $2,500; and (2) revise the penalty for submitting a fraudulent acknowledgment.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to treat as a physician, for Medicare purposes, a clinical psychologist acting within the scope of a psychologist's license (or other state law authorization), but only with respect to the furnishing of clinical psychologists services which the psychologist is legally authorized to perform by the state.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety Act - Amends the Animal Welfare Act to define a "high volume retail breeder" as a person who, in commerce, for compensation or profit: (1) has an ownership interest in or custody of one or more breeding female dogs; and (2) sells, via any means of conveyance, more than 50 of the offspring of such dogs for use as pets in any one-year period. Considers such a breeder of dogs to be a dealer. Requires dealers to include on licensing applications and annual renewals the total number of dogs exempted from exercise on the premises of the dealer in the preceding year by a licensed veterinarian. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to promulgate requirements for the exercise of dogs at facilities owned or operated by a dealer, including requiring daily access to exercise that: (1) allows the dogs to move sufficiently in a way that is not forced, repetitive, or restrictive; and (2) is in an area that is spacious, cleaned at least once a day, free of infestation by pests or vermin, and designed to prevent the dogs from escaping. Allows an exemption if: (1) a licensed veterinarian determines that a dog should not exercise because of the health, condition, or well-being of the dog; and (2) such determination is reviewed and updated at least once every 30 days by the veterinarian, unless the basis for the determination is a permanent condition. Subjects such a determination to review and approval by the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Authorizes the use of the Capitol rotunda, during the 112th Congress, for a ceremony to honor the last U.S. veteran of the First World War, the late Mr. Frank Woodruff Buckles, as a tribute and recognition of all U.S. military members who served in the First World War.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over-the-air, or on any business for such public performance of sound recordings.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2011
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to authorize a person who is carrying a government-issued photographic identification document and a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm in one state, and who is not prohibited from possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm under federal law, to carry a concealed handgun (other than a machinegun or destructive device) in another state in accordance with the restrictions of that state.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and implement a Pancreatic Cancer Initiative to assist in coordinating activities to address the high mortality rate associated with pancreatic cancer. Requires the Secretary to establish the Interdisciplinary Pancreatic Cancer Coordinating Committee to: (1) provide advice on overall research objectives and benchmarks for pancreatic cancer research; (2) develop and update not less than every five years a strategic plan for pancreatic cancer research awareness; and (3) conduct evaluations and make recommendations as needed to the Secretary, the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) regarding the prioritization and award of NIH research grants relating to pancreatic cancer. Requires the Secretary to develop a primary care provider education program on pancreatic cancer. Requires the Director of NCI and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop a communication tool kit for patients and their families that focuses on specific pancreatic cancer issues relating to patient choices and patient care. Allows the Secretary to award grants to research institutions for use in developing innovative compounds or technologies for the prevention, early detection, or treatment of those cancers with five-year survival rates of less than 50%. Requires the Secretary to focus on pancreatic cancer during the initial five fiscal years of awarding such grants. Allows the Secretary to designate two additional Specialized Programs of Research Excellence focusing solely on pancreatic cancer research.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Government Neutrality in Contracting Act - Directs the head of any federal agency that awards or obligates funds for any construction contract, or that awards grants, provides financial assistance, or enters into cooperative agreements for construction projects, to ensure that bid specifications, project agreements, or other controlling documents do not: (1) require or prohibit a bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor from entering into, or adhering to, agreements with a labor organization, with respect to that construction project or another related construction project; or (2) otherwise discriminate against or give preference to such a party because it did or did not become a signatory or otherwise adhere to such an agreement. Allows exemptions to avert an imminent threat to public health or safety or to serve national security. Allows additional exemptions for certain projects. Directs the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement this Act with respect to the applicable federal contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Hire A Hero Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small business employers a work opportunity tax credit for hiring a member of the Ready Reserve or the National Guard.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Urges Congress not to enact any legislation that would grant state governments the authority to impose any new burdensome or unfair tax collecting requirements on small online businesses and entrepreneurs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to arrange for the award of a single Congressional Gold Medal to honor collectively the World War II members of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) in recognition of their military service and exemplary record during World War II. Requires the Medal's display at the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medal should be made available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations associated with the CAP. Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal, at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the medals.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Safe Highway Markings Act of 2011 - Prescribes standards for glass beads used in pavement markings, limiting the arsenic or lead content to 200 parts per million. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to withhold up to 5% of the apportionment of federal-aid highway funds for any state that fails to enforce requirements to ensure that glass beads used in pavement markings on or along federal-aid highway roads or highways do not contain more than 200 parts per million arsenic or lead.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Short Line Railroad Rehabilitation and Investment Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for railroad track maintenance, to: (1) expand the types of maintenance expenditures eligible for such credit, and (2) extend such credit through 2017.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Floodplain Maps Moratorium Act - Amends the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 to delay for five years the requirement to purchase flood insurance for properties in a new flood hazard area if the area's state or local government has developed a flood evacuation plan and meets other specified criteria. Makes the preferred risk rate method premium available for flood insurance coverage of such properties. Directs the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish and implement a plan to notify annually residents of areas having special flood hazards regarding the mandatory purchase requirement. Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to require the Director to: (1) notify the pertinent Members of Congress as well as the affected communities and their state and local governments about any decision to make a floodplain area or flood-risk zone revision, and (2) provide each such community and state and local government with an opportunity to review and propose modifications to a flood insurance map change or revision. Requires the Comptroller General to review the methodology used to issue or revise flood insurance rate maps. Requires the Director to notify a local television and radio station about proposed or published flood elevation determinations. Directs the Administrator of FEMA to report to Congress a plan for repaying within 10 years all unpaid presidentially approved flood insurance program debt.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Federal Trade Commission and National Gallery of Art Facility Consolidation, Savings, and Efficiency Act of 2011 - Requires the Administrator of General Services (GSA), not later than December 31, 2014, to transfer administrative jurisdiction, custody, and control of the building located at 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, in Washington, DC, to the National Gallery of Art and to name such building as the North Building of the National Gallery of Art. Requires the National Gallery of Art to pay the costs of remodeling, renovating, or reconstructing such building. Requires the GSA Administrator to relocate the offices of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) housed in such building to other buildings in Washington, DC, owned by the federal government.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Teacher Tax Deduction Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase from $250 to $500 the dollar limit on the tax deduction for certain expenses of elementary and secondary school teachers and to extend such deduction through 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Military Spouses Employment Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include spouses of members of the Armed Forces on extended active duty (more than 90 days or for an indefinite period) as members of a targeted group for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit (thus giving employers a tax incentive for hiring military spouses).
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2011
FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011 - Authorizes appropriations for FY2011-FY2014 for: (1) airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning programs, (2) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) air navigation facilities and equipment, (3) FAA operations, and (4) administrative expenses for certain airport programs. Converts to permanent the pilot program for passenger facility charges (PFCs) at nonhub airports. Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to establish a pilot program to authorize, at up to five airports, a PFC to finance the eligible cost of an intermodal ground access project. Directs the Comptroller General to study an alternative means to collect PFCs without their inclusion in the price of an airline ticket. Revises requirements for establishment and adjustment of user fees for FAA services. Directs the FAA Administrator to p rescribe certain registration, certification, and other specified fees. Revises airport improvement program (AIP) requirements. Allows a general aviation airport sponsor, without federal sanction, to enter into a through-the-fence agreement granting a person owning residential real property adjacent to the airport access to the airfield for the person's aircraft or an aircraft the person has authorized. Repeals the prohibition against approval of any Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority application: (1) for an airport development project grant; or (2) to impose a PFC. Requires the FAA Administrator to appoint a Chief NextGen Officer to implement all Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) programs. Directs the DOT Inspector General to review the award and oversight of FAA contracts to provide automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) services for the national airspace system. Requires the FAA Administrator, after an assessment of leases for critical FAA facility sites located near wind farms or areas suitable for their construction, and following a Comptroller General evaluation of the impact of wind farms on implementation of the NextGen System, to issue guidelines for the construction of such wind farms. Requires the FAA Administrator to monitor the noise impacts of the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia Metropolitan Area Airspace Redesign. Directs the FAA Administrator to: (1) develop a strategic runway safety plan, as well as a plan for the installation of systems to alert controllers or flight crew members of potential runway incursions; (2) study flight attendant fatigue; and (3) review off-airport, low-altitude aircraft weather observation technologies. Directs the FAA Administrator to conduct a rulemaking proceeding to improve the safety of flight crewmembers, medical personnel, and passengers onboard helicopters providing helicopter air ambulance services. Prohibits flight crewmembers from using a personal wireless communications device or laptop computer while at a duty station on a flight while an aircraft is being operated. Directs the FAA Administrator to establish and implement a safety assessment system for foreign repair stations that perform maintenance on U.S. aircraft. Requires the Secretary to develop a plan for the safe integration of commercial unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system. Establishes in the FAA an Aviation Safety Whistleblower Investigation Office. Directs the FAA Administrator to initiate rulemaking proceedings regarding duty periods and flight time limitations for flight crew members. Revises requirements and authorizes funding through FY2013 for the Essential Air Service (EAS) program. Authorizes funding for FY2014 and each fiscal year thereafter for EAS in Alaska and Hawaii. Repeals the EAS Local Participation Program. Terminates the EAS program (except in Alaska and Hawaii) on October 1, 2013. Increases from 24 to 34 the number of slots exempt from specified requirements and prohibitions concerning operation of an aircraft nonstop between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and another airport more than 1,250 statute miles away (Perimeter Rule limit). Requires certain air carriers and airport operators to submit for the Secretary's approval emergency contingency plans for passenger service during grounded aircraft flight delays. Directs the Secretary to notify the public of the DOT's: (1) consumer complaints hotline telephone number; and (2) Aviation Consumer Protection Division website. Expresses the sense of Congress urging all U.S. commercial air carriers to reduce air fares and eliminate certain fees or charges for members of the Armed Forces. Directs the DOT Inspector General to review air carrier flight delays, cancellations, and associated causes since 2000. Directs the Secretary to develop an expedited and coordinated environmental review process for NextGen environmental efficiency projects. Prohibits operating certain aircraft weighing 75,000 pounds or less that do not comply with stage 3 noise levels. Directs the Secretary to establish an aircraft departure queue management pilot program. Authorizes the FAA Administrator to implement practices for the incorporation of energy-efficient measures in the construction and renovation of FAA air traffic control facilities. Revises FAA personnel management system requirements with respect to the mediation, alternative resolution, and binding arbitration of disputes between the FAA Administrator and FAA employees about implementation of proposed changes to the system. Directs the FAA Administrator to assess: (1) FAA's technical training strategy and improvement plan for airway transportation systems specialists, (2) training programs for FAA air traffic controllers, and (3) conditions of FAA facilities. Directs the FAA Administrator to implement a certain staffing model for FAA aviation safety inspectors. Extends the Secretary's authority to provide insurance and reinsurance against loss or damage arising out of any risk from the operation of a domestic or foreign aircraft. Authorizes the FAA Administrator to access the criminal history records or databases systems of specified federal law enforcement agencies. Directs the FAA Administrator to provide for the realignment of FAA services and facilities to facilitate NextGen air traffic control modernization. Establishes the Aviation Facilities and Services Board. Directs the Comptroller General to study the impact of increases in aviation fuel prices on the Airport and Airway Trust Fund and the aviation industry. Amends the Railway Labor Act to grant the DOT Inspector General the authority to review National Mediation Board operations to determine compliance with federal laws, rules, and regulations. Renames space flight participants in commercial space transportation space flight passengers.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the 3% withholding requirement on payments due to vendors providing services to federal, state, and local governmental entities.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2011
Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to reduce the amount apportioned for a surface transportation program, project, or activity for FY2011 by amounts apportioned or allocated under the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2010 and the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2010, Part II for the period October 1, 2010-March 4, 2011. Amends the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2010 to extend through FY2011 the authorization of appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) (other than the Mass Transit Account) for the federal-aid highway, surface transportation research, and transportation planning programs under the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). Extends through FY2011 the authorization of appropriations, at increased amounts, for federal-aid highway program administrative expenses. Amends SAFETEA-LU to extend through FY2011 the authorization of appropriations for specified National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) safety programs (including NHTSA administrative expenses) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) programs. Extends through FY2011 the funding for hazardous materials (hazmat) research projects. Amends the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act to extend through FY2011 the authorization of appropriations, and current requirements for their distribution, for fish restoration and management projects. Extends the set-aside for administrative expenses for carrying out such projects. Extends through FY2011 the allocation of capital investment grant funds for federal transit programs, including the metropolitan planning program and the state planning and research program. Extends the special rule authority of the Secretary to award urbanized area formula grants to finance the operating cost of equipment and facilities for use in public transportation in an urbanized area with a population of at least 200,000. Allocates through FY2011 certain amounts for formula and bus grants and capital investment grants for: (1) certain new fixed guideway capital projects; (2) new fixed guideway ferry systems and extension projects in Alaska and Hawaii; (3) payments to the Denali Commission for docks, waterfront development projects, and related transportation infrastructure; (4) ferry boats or ferry terminal facilities; (5) a set-aside for the national fuel cell bus technology development program; (6) projects in nonurbanized areas; (7) intermodal terminal projects; and (8) bus testing. Extends through FY2011 the apportionments of: (1) nonurbanized area formula grants for public transportation on Indian reservations; and (2) capital investment grant funds for certain fixed guideway modernization projects. Extends through FY2011 the authorization appropriations from the HTF Mass Transit Account for: (1) formula and bus grant projects, (2) capital investment grants, (3) transit research, and (4) administration expenses. Extends through FY2011 certain SAFETEA-LU programs, including: (1) the contracted paratransit pilot program, (2) the public-private partnership pilot program, (3) project authorizations for final design and construction and preliminary engineering of specified fixed guideway projects, and (4) the elderly individuals and individuals with disabilities pilot program. Extends through FY2011 certain allocations for national research and technology programs. Extends obligation authority of the Highway Category and the Mass Transit Category through FY 2011, but limited to the FY2009 amount. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through FY2011 authorities for expenditures from the: (1) HTF Highway and Mass Transit accounts, and (2) Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Second Amendment Enforcement Act - Amends specified law prohibiting the killing of wild birds and wild animals in the District of Columbia to declare that nothing in it or any other provision of law shall authorize or be construed to permit the Council, the Mayor, or any governmental or regulatory authority of the District to prohibit, constructively prohibit, or unduly burden the ability of persons otherwise not prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law from acquiring, possessing in their homes or businesses, transporting for legitimate purposes, or using for sporting, self-protection or other lawful purposes, any firearm neither prohibited by federal law nor subject to the National Firearms Act. Denies the District any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms. Declares that nothing in such prohibitions shall be construed to prohibit the District from regulating the carrying of firearms by a person, either concealed or openly, other than at the person's dwelling place, place of business, or on other land possessed by the person. Amends the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 (FCRA) to repeal the definition of a machine gun as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily converted or restored to shoot semiautomatically, more than 12 shots without manual reloading. (Thus repeals the ban on semiautomatic weapons.) Redefines "machine gun" as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot automatically, more than one shot without manual reloading by a single function of the trigger. Includes also the frame or receiver of any such firearm, any part designed and intended solely and exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended, for use in converting a firearm into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from which a machine gun can be assembled if such parts are in the possession or under the control of a person. Repeals the District's: (1) registration requirement for possession of firearms; and (2) requirement that licensed firearms dealers keep records of ammunition received into inventory and ammunition sold or transferred. Maintains the current ban on the possession and control of a sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, or short-barreled rifle. Permits a licensed firearms dealer to sell or transfer ammunition, excluding restricted pistol bullets, to persons not otherwise prohibited from possessing or receiving ammunition. Declares that, in the case of a sale or transfer of a handgun to a District resident, a federally licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer of firearms in Maryland or Virginia shall be treated as a dealer licensed under this Act if: (1) the transferee meets in person with the transferor to accomplish the transfer; and (2) the sale, delivery, and receipt fully comply with the legal conditions of sale in both the District and the jurisdiction in which the transfer occurs. Amends FCRA to allow an individual to possess ammunition in the District if the individual owns (currently, holds the valid registration certificate for) a firearm of the same gauge or caliber as such ammunition. (In effect, repeals the handgun ammunition ban.) Repeals the requirement that firearms in the possession of individuals (other than law enforcement personnel) must be kept unloaded, disassembled, or with the trigger locked, unless the firearm is kept at an individual's place of business, or while being used for lawful recreational purposes within the District . Continues current criminal penalties for allowing access of a minor (under age 16) to loaded firearms, except in specified circumstances. Repeals increased penalties for violations of the prohibition against allowing access of a minor to loaded firearms if injury or death results to the minor or another person. Requires the U.S. attorney, however, to consider both the extent of the minor's injuries and the effect of the minor's injury or death on both of the minor's parents when deciding whether to file charges. Prohibits any prosecution in such circumstances unless the person who committed the violation behaved in a grossly negligent manner, or unless similarly egregious circumstances exist. Eliminates criminal penalties for possessing an unregistered firearm. Amends the District of Columbia Code to: (1) allow private persons or entities owning property in the District to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on their property (other than authorized law enforcement personnel or lessees occupying residential or business premises); (2) prohibit unauthorized carrying of rifles or shotguns in the District; (3) authorize certain individuals to carry firearms in certain places and for certain purposes; (4) prescribe requirements for lawful transportation of firearms; and (5) prohibit the use of toy and antique pistols to commit a violent or dangerous crime. Authorizes the District of Columbia to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms (except to lessees occupying residential or business premises) within any building or structure under its control, or in any area of it, which has implemented security measures to identify and exclude unauthorized or hazardous persons or articles. Amends the Office of Administrative Hearings Establishment Act of 2001 to grant jurisdiction to the Office of Administrative Hearings to hear cases pertaining to denial or revocation of firearm dealer licenses. Repeals the Firearms Registration Amendment Act of 2008 and the Inoperable Pistol Amendment Act of 2008. Restores and revives any provision of law amended or repealed by such Acts as if such Acts had not been enacted into law.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Collectible Firearms Protection Act - Amends the Arms Export Control Act to allow the importation of certain firearms listed as curios or relics into the United States by a licensed importer without the requirement of an authorization from or payment to the Department of State or the Department of Defense (DOD) upon certification to the Attorney General that such firearms are lawfully possessed under the laws of the exporting country.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
American Competitiveness Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the maximum income tax rate on corporations to 25% of corporate taxable income exceeding $50,000. Provides a special rule for any taxable year beginning in 2011 by establishing a maximum 30% rate for corporate taxable income exceeding $75,000.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2011
Expresses the sense of Congress that at a military funeral, memorial service, or wreath laying, the musical piece known as "Taps" should be sounded by a live solo bugler or trumpeter when possible. Designates Taps as the National Song of Remembrance. Provides for the appropriate conduct of military and non-military persons present during the playing of Taps. Provides an exception to such conduct when Taps is sounded as the final call of the day at a military base.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2011
Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 to extend the period for the submission by members of the Armed Forces of claims for retroactive stop-loss special pay (paid to members whose enlistment or period of obligated service was extended, or whose eligibility for retirement was suspended, by the President in time or war or national emergency) from one to two years after the date on which implementing rules for such payments take effect. Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to include in a required report concerning such payments a plan describing DOD outreach and informational efforts to promote and increase awareness of the special pay.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2011
Honor and Remember Flag Recognition Act - Designates the Honor and Remember Flag, created by Honor and Remember, Inc., as the official symbol of our country's concern and commitment to honoring and remembering all members of the Armed Forces who lost their lives in the line of duty. Provides days of the year, and memorials and other locations, on or at which the Flag shall be displayed.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2011 - Directs the Comptroller General to complete, before the end of 2012, an audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and of the federal reserve banks, followed by a detailed report to Congress. Repeals specified limitations on such an audit.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act or SOAR Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award five-year grants on a competitive basis to nonprofit organizations to carry out a program to provide expanded school choice opportunities to students who are District of Columbia (DC) residents and who come from households: (1) receiving assistance under the supplemental nutrition assistance program under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008; or (2) with incomes not exceeding 185% of the poverty line, except in certain grandfathered circumstances. Requires the Secretary to provide funds to the Mayor of the District of Columbia, if the Mayor agrees to specified requirements, for: (1) the DC public schools to improve public education, and (2) the DC public charter schools to improve and expand quality public charter schools. Prescribes requirements for schools participating in such grant programs. Requires each participating school to administer a nationally norm-referenced standardized test in reading and mathematics to each enrolled student receiving an opportunity scholarship. Repeals the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003. Prescribes special rules for funding opportunity scholarships for DC students.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Assessment Accuracy and Improvement Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow states to require the use of adaptive assessments of student progress toward state academic performance standards that accurately assess student achievement above and below grade level while also measuring grade-level performance. Defines an "adaptive assessment" as one that changes in difficulty in accordance with a student's performance, but reports its outcome on a scale common to all students.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
10th Amendment Regulatory Reform Act - Authorizes a designated state official to file with the head of a federal agency proposing a rule, during the period when the proposed rule is required to be open for public comment, a legal brief challenging the constitutionality of the rule under the Tenth Amendment. Directs the agency head: (1) to notify the designated official of each state within 15 days after such a brief is filed; (2) to post prominently on the agency's primary Web page a link to the brief within 10 days after such brief is filed; and (3) within 15 days after posting such link, to certify in writing that such rulemaking does not violate the Tenth Amendment and post the certification prominently on the front page of the agency's website, unless the agency determines it will not put the proposed rule into effect. Authorizes a state official who decides to challenge a federal rule on the grounds that it violates the Tenth Amendment to elect to file a legal action in U.S. district court for the district in which the official's place of business is located. Directs the relevant U.S. Court of Appeals, at the request of a designated state official, to grant expedited review of a decision by a district court in such a case.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
State and Local Law Enforcement Hatch Act Reform Act of 2011 - Amends the Hatch Act to: (1) allow state and local law enforcement officers to be candidates for the office of sheriff; and (2) allow sheriffs to engage in campaign activities by attending or speaking at political campaign rallies or events, holding or sponsoring political fundraisers, or appearing on political advertisements. Establishes a limitation period of six months after the later of the date of the alleged violation or the date of enactment of this Act for presenting charges against a law enforcement officer for Hatch Act violations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Urges the Secretary of State to remove the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) from the Department of State's list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations and to lift all restrictions imposed on the MEK, its members, and its affiliates.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2011
Kids Just Want to Ride Act - Amends the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 to exempt off-highway vehicles from children's product lead limits. Defines "off-highway vehicle" as: (1) any motorized vehicle designed to travel on two, three, or four wheels and having a seat designed to be straddled by the operator and handlebars for steering control; and (2) a snowmobile. Allows the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to exempt a specific product or material from the limits if it finds that lead in the product or material will not result in the absorption of lead (under current law, of any lead) into the human body, taking into account normal and reasonably foreseeable use and abuse of the product by a child.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2011
Veterans' Heritage Firearms Act of 2011 - Provides a 90-day amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record any firearm acquired before October 31, 1968, by a veteran while a member of the Armed Forces stationed outside the continental United States. Grants such an individual limited immunity under the federal criminal code and the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the acquisition, possession, transportation, or alteration of such firearm before or concurrent with such registration. Extends such immunity to a veteran who attempts to register a qualifying firearm outside of the amnesty period if the veteran surrenders the firearm within 30 days after being notified of potential criminal liability for continued possession. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) transfer each firearm qualifying as a curio or relic which has been forfeited to the United States to the first qualified museum that requests it, and (2) publish information identifying each such firearm which is available to be transferred to a museum. Prohibits the Attorney General from destroying any such firearm which has been forfeited until five years after the forfeiture. Requires that any firearm transferred to a qualified museum be registered to the transferee. Makes a prohibition against transfer or possession of a machine-gun inapplicable to a transfer to or by, or possession by, a museum which is open to the public and incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation under applicable state law.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2011
Full Faith and Credit Act - Requires the authority of the Department of the Treasury to pay the principal and interest on debt held by the public to take priority over all other obligations incurred by the government in the event the federal debt reaches the statutory limit.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2011
Stopping Trained in America Ph.D.s From Leaving the Economy Act of 2011 or the STAPLE Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to exempt from: (1) direct numerical limitations aliens who have earned a Ph.D. degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) from a U.S. institution of higher education and who have an offer of employment from a U.S. employer in a field related to such degree; and (2) H-1B visa (specialty occupation) numerical limitations aliens who have a U.S. STEM Ph.D. and with respect to whom the petitioning employer requires such an education.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2011
Help Efficient, Accessible, Low Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2011 - Sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims regarding health care goods or services or any medical product affecting interstate commerce. Sets a statute of limitations of three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers the injury, with certain exceptions. Limits noneconomic damages to $250,000. Makes each party liable only for the amount of damages directly proportional to such party's percentage of responsibility. Allows the court to restrict the payment of attorney contingency fees. Limits the fees to a decreasing percentage based on the increasing value of the amount awarded. Allows the introduction of collateral source benefits and the amount paid to secure such benefits as evidence. Prohibits a provider of such benefits from recovering any amount from an award in a health care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. Authorizes the award of punitive damages only where: (1) it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that a person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant or deliberately failed to avoid unnecessary injury the claimant was substantially certain to suffer; and (2) compensatory damages are awarded. Limits punitive damages to the greater of two times the amount of economic damages or $250,000. Denies punitive damages in the case of products approved, cleared, or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or otherwise considered in compliance with FDA standards. Provides for periodic payments of future damages.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2011
National Blue Alert Act of 2011 - Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish a national Blue Alert communications network within the Department of Justice (DOJ) to disseminate information when a law enforcement officer is seriously injured or killed in the line of duty, and (2) assign a DOJ officer to act as the national coordinator of the Blue Alert communications network. Sets forth the duties of the national coordinator, including encouraging states and local governments to develop additional Blue Alert plans, establishing voluntary guidelines for states and local governments to use in developing such plans, developing protocols for efforts to apprehend suspects, and establishing an advisory group to assist states, local governments, law enforcement agencies, and other entities in initiating, facilitating, and promoting Blue Alert plans. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act to require the use of public safety and community policing grants to assist states in developing and enhancing a Blue Alert plan and communications network.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to terminate: (1) the taxpayer election to designate $3 of income tax liability for financing of presidential election campaigns; (2) the Presidential Election Campaign Fund; and (3) the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2011
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2011- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services. Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations exempting a length of service award program from treatment as an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2011
Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2011 - Rewrites provisions regarding congressional review of agency rulemaking to require congressional approval of major rules of the executive branch before they may take effect (currently, major rules take effect unless Congress passes and the President signs a joint resolution disapproving them). Defines "major rule" as any rule, including an interim final rule, that has resulted in or is likely to result in: (1) an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; (2) a major increase in costs or prices; or (3) significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or U.S. competitiveness. Provides that if a joint resolution of approval of a major rule is not enacted by the end of 70 session days or legislative days after the agency proposing the rule submits its report on such rule to Congress, the rule shall be deemed not to be approved and shall not take effect. Permits a major rule to take effect for 90 calendar days without such approval if the President determines such rule is necessary because of an imminent threat to health or safety or other emergency, for the enforcement of criminal laws, for national security, or to implement an international trade agreement. Sets forth House and Senate procedures for joint resolutions approving major rules and disapproving non-major rules.
United States · United States Congress · 12 January 2011
Stop the OverPrinting (STOP) Act - Requires the Public Printer, subject only to the exceptions below, to make bills and resolutions available for the use of the House of Representatives and Senate only in an electronic format accessible through the Internet. Provides the following exceptions: (1) if a committee of the House or Senate, at any time during a Congress, requests the Public Printer to provide the committee with printed copies of each bill or resolution during the Congress that is within the committee's jurisdiction, the Public Printer shall provide the committee with printed copies of each such bill or resolution (limited to 75 copies); and (2) at the request of a Member or committee of the House or Senate, the Public Printer shall provide the Member or committee with such number of copies of a bill or resolution as the Member or committee may request.
United States · United States Congress · 12 January 2011
Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal a provision (added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) that extends to corporations that are not tax-exempt the requirement to report payments of $600 or more.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2011
Veterans Dog Training Therapy Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program for assessing the effectiveness of addressing post-deployment mental health and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms through a therapeutic medium of service dog training and handling for veterans with disabilities. Requires such program to be carried out at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers that can provide training areas for such purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 2011
Extends through 2013 eligibility for the concurrent receipt of military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation for veterans who were retired or separated due to physical disability, regardless of their disability rating or years of service.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 2011
Health Care Safety Net Enhancement Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to deem a hospital or an emergency department and a physician or physician group of such hospital or emergency department to be an employee of the Public Health Service for purposes of any civil action that may arise due to providing emergency and post-stabilization services on or after January 1, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 2011
Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal a provision (added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) that extends to corporations that are not tax-exempt the requirement to report payments of $600 or more.
![Official portrait of Rep. Hanna, Richard L. [R-NY-22]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h001051_200.jpg)